The Final Battle
by razzy101
Summary: A short story focused on Dorian's perspective as he tries to aid his amatus in his final conflict against Corypheus. This story is set just after the defeat of the red lyrium dragon. Will Inquisitor Lavellan survive solo against Corypheus?
1. The ruins of the Temple of Sacred Ashes

***Author's note: It's been a while since I've posted any stories, due to the stresses of school and now college. I would like to thank those who have favourited my other stories and have given me some really nice comments, I greatly appreciate it =). I'm hoping to get back into writing stories again since I love it. I'm open to feedback as always, I hope you enjoy.***

'This is it. The final conflict, the one where I lose him forever.' Dorian sighed, as troubling thoughts swirled in his conscience, as they approached the place where it all began, well, for the Inquisitor not himself.  
The Temple of Sacred Ashes now even more unrecognisable from its past, though most members of the Inquisition had gotten used to seeing it in such a poor state; the roof had been completely blown off; walls had crumbled and leant precariously in some places. Scorched marks littered the building expanding out from the centre of the temple and charred figures reacting spanning across the lengths of the ruin, frozen in their final moment of shock and fear. Of course it was this part of the ruin that made people uncomfortable, over the span from which this horrific event took place the charred flesh had begin to peel away with age from the bone due to the extreme elements. The stench of these horrifying statues was overwhelming; the insides had liquidated being the source of their foul odour. As they crept closer to the origin of the blast the bodies had been in worse shape as only blackened bones remained fixed in place by crude body muscles that were melting away, the slightest tremble of the cracked stone floor was enough to cause these bones to fall into a heap. Cassandra had once commented while the place was under investigation that 'at least the bones here are silent unlike at home.'


	2. A Night to Remember

His amatus seemed unbothered throughout, perhaps it's because he lived it, and to Dorian's knowledge his lover had returned to the ruins multiple times outside campaigns led by the Inquisition. Kai had taken him once, late one evening. The kind of evening that is always mentioned in fairytales, when the soft amber light is just strong enough to cast long shadows across the landscape, but also dim enough to allow the brighter stars to shine though the cobalt sky. Kai seemed to use it as a place of grounding and humbling. Lavellan had sat on one of the outcrops of rock which had collapsed outwards, it looked like it may have been a part of the main temple structure, a pillar or something of the like. This rocky outcrop stuck out precariously over the ruins and off the side of the mountain the temple was built on. Kai would just sit there, right on the very edge with his feet dangling over the steep drop, leaning back placing all his weight on his elbows and resting his hands firmly on the smooth rock, he gazed up at the sky carefully taking into account all of the different colours produced by the fading light. The light of the gradually brightening stars reflected in his eyes, the Herald seemed fully at peace.  
When Dorian finally built up the courage to join him, being sure not to look down and ignore how high up they were he trudged slowly towards the elf, his legs shaking, heavy as lead, the mage almost gave up. Well he considered calling Kai down, but felt shame in the action, and after all he was supposed to be a flawless specimen of his homeland, he could let a small thing like death from falling from this highly unstable ledge stop him. After what seemed like an eternity, Dorian gracefully sat beside his amatus, the rogue was chuckling to himself, most likely at Dorian's ridiculous fear induced antics and not stop moaning all the way to the edge,  
"Why couldn't you be like normal people and sit in a nice garden, there's a perfectly good one at Skyhold you know."  
"Is this a Dalish thing? Do all of you feel the need to find the most dangerous place to relax, like cats do? The most uncomfortable, nerve wracking location you can? Not only do we come to an eerie ruin but you have to find the thinnest, most unstable place to sit down!" Kai chuckled turning to face his vhenan, his eyes sparkled,  
"I don't know why to be honest. I just feel like times stops here, the universe just keeps on going around me."  
Dorian hummed, "I wouldn't be surprised if time did truly stop here, with all the magic atrocities that have happened over the last few months. I hate to think what state the balance is in, most likely chucked down the privy with everything else that made sense."  
The Inquisitor nodded in agreement,  
"Opens your eyes though, doesn't it? When you begin in life, everything seems to make sense, it's all so simple. Like, you play your part in life and that's it, nothing more to it. Here you are, this is what you have to do and then you die."  
This attitude surprised Dorian, it was true that he had felt trapped in life playing a role he hadn't wanted. But to hear it from someone who he believed was as free as a bird showed him just how naive he was. He snapped out of his thoughts by his amatus.  
"Hey, are you even listening to me? Never mind. I know I can rattle on a bit."  
The mage sighed, "Apologies amatus, I was listening but I was also thinking. Please continue." This made the elf roll his eyes, he looked up at the stars in wonder, "What do you think about those myths about life out there. All that potential, we can't really be the only living things in the universe, right?" Dorian simply shrugged.  
"I would love to see those stars up close you know; I bet they're even more beautiful up close."  
Dorian's heart swelled, suppressing a smile he decided to be cheesy, "Indeed, but not as beautiful as you." Kai laughed, turning away, he was definitely blushing.  
"I think we should go back now, before you get anymore syrupy."

That night was always fresh in the Tevinter's mind. When he thought of all the moments they had shared, it was always that night that came to mind. Now as they approached it, the final stage, as Varric had said ' _How many hero stories have you heard with a happy ending.'_ Before the altus could read the situation he was pointed towards demons and ordered to fight. He did so, but soon realised his amatus was nowhere to be seen. Glancing around Dorian's sights set upon the disfigured stairs spotting the elf near the top, no one had accompanied him. Forgetting all about his current task, he headed for the stairs, only to be abruptly stopped by Cassandra and Cullen. The path crumbled cutting the Inquisitor off from his allies.  
"He'll die!" Screamed Dorian with rage. "You've led him to his demise! You heartless, backstabbing..."  
"Enough!" Growled Cassandra, cutting the mage off.  
"We've helped him all we can; it's up to the Maker now." Reasoned Cullen calmly.  
Dorian pushed away from them, he was filled with mixed emotions; rage, guilt, pain and fear. This fear was like nothing the mage had ever experienced before, it was deep within him, his stomach churned and his vision wasn't focused. ' _Ha, look what you've done to me Kai, I feel awful, if you die I fear I may become broken beyond repair.'_ From all the men in the world, he had to pick the one who was doomed to a horrible, lonely death. It was true that Kai only had to face Corypheus for they had taken down his dragon abomination together. But still the mage felt numb, almost as if something was sucking all the feeling out of him, all those emotions were slowly slipping away being replaced by an unsettling numbness.


	3. Settling Dust

A beam of green light burst into the sky, spreading like fingers to ensnare the breach in its grasp, squeezing it together in its fist. In a matter of moments it was all over, leaving only a scar as a reminder of the horrors that had once been there. It was almost beautiful. The floating segments of the ruin fell the ground with harsh impact creating a huge dust cloud that smothered the Inquisition army. Dorian could hear people coughing and some others throwing up, for a moment it puzzled him was it because of the stress? Then it dawned upon him, he covered his nose and mouth with the sleeve of his robe, racking his brain for any spell to clear the dust for it contained the burned remains of those who originally died at the temple of sacred ashes. Never the less he pushed forward searching for the section of the ruin where the battle between his Herald and the darkspawn magister had taken place. Fortunately for him one of the pillars had fallen close to ruin allowing him to use his magic to prop it up to make an unstable ramp in the place of the destroyed stairs.  
Faint calls could be heard as soldiers tried to track each other and regroup, Dorian was sure he had heard his own name called, but he refused to be distracted from his personal goal and continued to clamber up the ramp; to which he acknowledged was most likely a rather undignified sight. At the top it was still rather difficult to see through the rubble and thick cloud of dust – and burnt remains. It was settling on the stone floor and to the pariah's disgust on his robes and in his hair, this made his anticipation to bathe even stronger. He was once again forced to cover his nose and mouth to prevent it from filling his lungs which already felt as if they were burning, making it difficult to breathe. Moving forward, he heard a crunch beneath his foot, charred bones, _'What if they're his..?'_ Closing his eyes tightly and swallowing harshly to rid himself of the nausea building in his stomach he pressed forward convincing himself that they were from victims the first explosion. Towards the centre, beneath the scar in the sky, a figure laid covered in a thin layer of dust. As the mage moved closer he began to distinguish an object glittering beside the figure, it had a blue hue, the same aura that one of Kai's daggers had, one was still sheathed in its scabbard on Kai's back but it stilled glowed with a red aura from the rune embedded in the blade. The blue blade was still in Kai's outstretched hand with pointed to a large scorch mark on the stone surface.


	4. Amatus

Gently falling to his knees, Dorian leaned over his lover, picking him up and holding him close to his chest as if the Inquisitor was a newborn made of fragile glass that would break under the slightest pressure. Lavellan's expression was calm, a small cut on his cheek slowly pooled in the deeper segments with droplets of crimson blood contrasting against the elf's pale complexion. The Tevinter fell panic rising in his chest and a lump developing in his throat, he began to check his amatus for a pulse or heartbeat, finding no traces of life within his lover with his shaky hands. He never shook he was the very definition of confidence and emotional stability, he couldn't remember a time where he felt so weak and useless. Images from his memory flickered through his mind, his elven lover smiling, his eyes shining brightly, his laughter echoing in his ears from one of Dorian's petty insults. Kai's passion when he defended him from those who tried to beat him down like Mother Giselle and his father. Tears welled up to a point that they obscured his vision, as the memory of Kai sitting out there gazing up at the stars with such wonder set itself firmly in his mind. A tear fell, running down the mage's cheek and dripping off of his chin onto Kai's face. Kai's voice echoed in his mind, _'I would love to see those stars up close you know; I bet they're even more beautiful up close.'_ Holding Kai closer to him, Dorian took a sharp intake of air, inhaling his lover's scent, hiding his face into his amatus' neck. At some point in this agonising eternity, everyone else had caught up and were now solemnly around the grieving mage. Their heads were bowed in respect for the fallen. Some were also crying silently, not just for the loss of their Inquisitor but for everyone else who was sacrificed in the cause and in the relief that it was all over. For now they were safe again for now anyways.  
"Why is everyone so upset..? Vhenan?" It was so softly spoken that Dorian believed that he had imagined it, with the amount of grief he felt it was highly likely.  
"I'm not dead you dipstick." Kai grumbled a bit louder, Dorian opened his eyes to examine his lover again, Kai's eyes were barely open, slits at best. There was no way he could see the grieving crowd like that so he must have been relying on his sensitive hearing. Closing his eyes again, though it barely made a difference since they weren't really that open to begin with, Kai exhaled deeply and winced as he felt his vhenan change his position. To the Herald's surprise, Dorian made no witty remarks, nor did he sigh with relief or laugh, but rather dragged his lover into a tighter embrace and cry, for a man with incredibly high control over his emotions he seemed broken. Lavellan felt a pang of guilt and sympathy, Dorian had put up with so much, living with the constant fear of Kai dying at any moment every single day. Kai was flooded with frustration, he had tried to show he was alive as soon as he had come around which had occurred when Dorian had first moved him, but he failed through lack of strength, all he could do was lie there and let Dorian get himself all worked up. With all the strength he could muster he whispered in the altus' ear,  
"I won't ever leave you again, I love you Dorian more than anything."  
The mage sniffled, "I really hate you sometimes, making me feel like this. Humiliating myself in front of all these people."  
The mood of the crowd was mixed but word was spreading fast across the Inquisition, ' _The Herald lives.'_ Cassandra finally approached with the three advisers, suggesting that they returned to Skyhold. All the way to the Inquisitor's chambers, Dorian had refused to let anyone carry his lover, he ignored his aching body, ignoring just how bone tired he truly was. He was not going to lose him again, which he used as his argument every time someone tried to persuade him. Though many concerned with Dorian's physical and emotional state, deep down they knew that their Herald was in the safest hands possible.


	5. Back to Skyhold

Back at Skyhold, Dorian was just as stubborn, politely refusing any treatment for himself until Kai was guaranteed to survive his ordeal. The mage also ignored all advise to rest, though his body did eventually give out, and he ended up sharing his amatus' bed when Iron Bull and placed him in it against the wishes of all the healers present. When Kai awoke, it was dark outside; he could hear breathing behind him in a steady pattern, obviously asleep. With a great deal of effort the rogue turned over to face his lover, the most important man in his life. Inspecting his sleeping form he assumed Dorian had been put there rather than the mage just hopping in with him since he was fully clothed. From the dim candle light beside the bed Kai could make out Dorian's messy hair, black ringed eyes and droopy moustache, it make him chuckle seeing his vhenan so... Average.  
"You're awake then." Mumbled the Tevinter sleepily.  
"I believe so." He couldn't help but giggle; his hair resembled that of Blackwall's untamed mane with that bed head.  
"Dare I ask what is tickling you? Or is that to do with those medicinal herbs they gave you earlier?"  
"My apologies vhenan, I'm not used to seeing you like this."  
"What in your bed? I suppose I can make arrangements for it to be a regular thing." Dorian replied slyly, this was more like the Dorian Kai knew, not the man back at the ruin.  
"I would enjoy that immensely, but it's weird to see you so unmaintained; messy hair, droopy moustache and you seem to be fully clothed."  
Kai felt Dorian sit up and grumble, "You'd think they would at least strip me first. I'll never get these creases out, it's pretty mush ruined."  
Kai grinned darkly, "Perhaps they didn't so I could enjoy watching you undress."  
Lavellan then followed this by laughing possibly an effect from the treatment he was getting, but this was abruptly cut short by agonising pain, leaving the elf gasping. Dorian was by his side immediately, sitting him up, feeding him some horrid tasting liquid and rubbing his back in soothing circular motions. After he showed signs of recovery, he was carefully laid back down.  
"That's so typical of you, scaring me as usual." Kai rolled his eyes and smiled sweetly at his vhenan.  
Dorian then grinned mischievously for a moment, then he ran a finger over his bottom lip looking seriously though his tone was playful, "Truth be told I don't believe you're strong enough to witness me undressing at this moment."  
"Awww, no fair." Rasped the elf disappointly.  
"Cuddle instead?" Kai whispered hopefully.  
Dorian sighed, "Alright then."  
It was a matter if moments before the sleeping draft Dorian had administered kicked in; the elf struggled to stay awake. Snuggled in the warm, protective embrace, while Dorian ran his fingers of his free hand through Kai's hair, lightly massaging his scalp,  
"Surrender amatus." Whispered Dorian gently. The Inquisitor sighed and did as his vhenan asked, he owed it to him. Kai dreamed that he was soaring through the sky visiting different worlds and witnessing the birth of a star, Kai looked back wishing that Dorian could be here to watch it with him. Within a few moments Dorian appeared alongside him after following his lover's slumber.  
"Isn't it beautiful Dorian?" Kai beamed brightly as the star built in strength. Dorian nodded,  
"It is indeed, but nothing will ever be as beautiful as you amatus."

 _ ***I hoped you enjoyed this small story. As always it helps me if you leave me a small review of your opinion so I can improve and grow as a writer. I have tried to break it up so that there isn't a huge block of writing, please give any feedback on this to whether I should keep laying my fanfics out this way. Thank you.***_


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